Political ad spending soars

Political spending for 1992 is estimated to have reached $ 310 million, according to statistics from the Television Bureau of Advertising. That’s 35% above the $ 230 million the TVB originally forecast for the period back in 1991.

The TVB attributes the difference between its forecast and the estimated figures to the addition of independent candidate Ross Perot to the mix.

Perot made use of high-priced half-hour blocks on the network and took political spending to new heights. President-elect Bill Clinton and President George Bush also increased their local and spot buys as the race wore on.

According to TVB estimates, some $ 60 million was spent on network advertising in 1992, while spot and local sales reached $ 250 million. For comparison, 20 years ago, network sales marked $ 6.5 million and spot and local collected $ 18 million.